The Real Deal Miami

South Florida buildings shiver in cold snap

January 08, 2010 03:17PM

Amid the severe cold snap plaguing South Florida, residents of the Connemara, a Singer Island condominium tower, have learned the hard way that the lack of a boiler has a chilly downside. The building never installed a boiler system when it installed a cooling tower years ago, and now indoor temperatures are down to as little as 57 degrees. Property manager Melody Cook said visitors from up north were in worse shape than they would have been if they’d stayed home where there was heat. In other buildings, such as the Palm Beach House at 5600 N. Flagler Drive in West Palm Beach, the rare need for heat exceeded some residents’ abilities to ward off the cold. Suzanne Harding, 69, said her heater hasn’t worked in days. Buying space heaters is an option, said Don DeLucia, spokesman for Palm Beach County Fire Rescue. But it’s an expense and an inconvenience Floridians didn’t expect. [Palm Beach Post]